Effective Ways to get Teachers to Use Technology
I am a 1st year Tech Coordinator. I taught elementary school for the past 10 years. I need to get teachers to use technology daily in their classrooms to enhance their instruction and the curriculum. I have done staff development and provided resources. I need more! What are some successful strategies to get teachers using technology? Thanks!
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by TI Teachers on
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Thank you for encouraging teachers to use technology in the classroom. The Texas Instrument Math blog recently featured an entry with tips for using technology in the classroom. The entry was written by an AP calculus teacher and draws on his own personal teaching experiences. To check out his suggestions click here: http://timath.com/blog/?p=237
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Permalink Reply by meL on
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I struggle with this on a daily basis. As what the state of Virginia calls an Instructional Technology Resource Teacher (ITRT) your question is one I ponder daily. When I started this job three years ago I knew it would be a tough sell - but I never imagined how tough. Every teacher has a laptop - some are as close to being untouched as one can get doing only the required things (grades and attendance), others are worn out within a year.
The buzzword in our district these days is "differentiated instruction" - it applies here as well. Remember that all your teachers are coming from a different place. They have different experiences, different expectiations. What works to get one to use technology won't necessarily work for any others. I have had greater success hand picking teachers for various technologies than anything else. There are teachers you have who will try anything, some who will try the basics, some won't try anything. Start with the ones who will try something, anything. Once you have gotten through those, try the next group - those who might use it if you can show them it will work for them and they can indeed do it. Use a little healthy competition (the teacher down the hall is using _______ and it is really working, the students love it). Spend some time finding out why a teacher won't use technology. This is frequently a good place to start. If you need to hold their hands the first few times, do it. Let them know you are willing to help out all they need for you to.
Good luck!
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Permalink Reply by Julie DeSutter on
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Teachers are the hardest to teach!!! But if you can survey the teacher to see what they know and don't know and then group them based their answers it may work better. Some teachers feel overwhelmed from the start on many technology workshops due to lack of knowledge or relation to their subject matter. But if you group them on what they want or need, it may work better. Also if you offer to teach a teacher's students about a new program or tool it could be a win, win in three ways. One, the teacher gets a break teaching. Two, the teacher sees the students getting excited about technology. Three, the teacher may be learning right along with the students(or thestudents could teach the teacher).
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Permalink Reply by Paul Anderson on
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I think a quiz/test is better than a survey, as a lot of the time, people tend to either under or over estimate what they know or don't know.
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Permalink Reply by Andrew Marcinek on
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One successful strategy would be to visit my blog! The mission of my blog is to provide practical ideas for teachers to incorporate technology in their classroom. I hope you like the blog and I look forward to hearing your feedback!
http://iteach20.blogspot.com/
Any questions please ask!
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Permalink Reply by Tracie Weisz on
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I started a blog this year called EdTechSec with the idea that it would include ideas and tools that teachers who were just beginning could apply in just a "sec". It was slow to take off - many staff in the district didn't even read it! Ironically it was getting decent readership from lots of other places though, so maybe it was helping some folks. I stuck with it and it gradually caught on over time. I still don't have a big in-district readership, but much more than when I started, and my out-of-district followers have steadily increased too.
Part of the problem is that our district will implement programs that are computer based - they require the kids to read and answer multiple choice questions on the computer. The district counts this as ed tech - I do not - but I think herein lies a lot of confusion for teachers who are just starting out with it. Just because they turn on a computer does not mean they are implementing technology in an educational way.
So I guess my lesson for this year and to others trying to motivate their colleagues is to just stick with it. Adoption is slow, but it is still progress that may not have happened were it not for your efforts and belief in the importance of it.
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When I was an elementary lab teacher and had open lab time part of the day I found that if I could get one teacher to bring a class in and we could complete one project successfully it encouraged others to do the same. I found one teacher that was willing to take the extra step, we created a slideshow project using KidPix and I entered one students project in a state competition. She won 3rd place and I drove the student and her mother to the awards ceremony 2-1/2 hours from our city. The rest was history. Then teachers were beating on the door to get open lab time to create projects that integrated technology. Find the first one...
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Permalink Reply by Nancy Bosch on
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Kudos---keep up the good work.
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Permalink Reply by Lee Alvin Beamon, Jr. on
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I agree with many of the post here. Work with the workable and take small steps to change the changeable. For me “Quick and Easy” is the key. If you can fine simple software to learn and use, do it. Just like Dominoes Pizza, 30 minutes or less. Make it something that you can teach in 20 minutes and create in 10. If the teachers can learn it quickly, the kids will run with it. Something as simple as free software like Photostory 3 can meet the need. I Packaged 4 images, 4 short scripts and a 20 minute training of the software itself. They created a short photostory and walked away with something they could use. The door is then left open to have you assist with a lesson that they may be able to lead with your help.
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Check out www.quizlet.net. I showed this to a couple of elementary teachers and some parents. I also use it for my 3rd grade son to practice mathfacts. I just found out that one of the teachers has been using it and the parents are loving it. You can take it as far down as preschool if you'd like. You could set up the ABCs and attach images such as A with an apple picture.
They can print off flash cards also.
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Permalink Reply by Olga Bezzabotnova on
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my name is Olga. I'm from Russia and I'm a teacher trainer. My job is also to encourage the teachers of English language to use ICT in their classroom.
We do the special programm for our teachers and ask them to use different techs for project work with their students.
On the 1st of December we are holding a Skype conference for our teachers on the problems of the use of ICT and Project work in English classes. Would you like to join us?
Mail or skype me in advance please if you are interested.
My skype name is olgabezz
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Permalink Reply by John Faig on
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We have a multipronged approach to getting teachers to use technology. First, completing at least one technology project is part of every teachers' formal evaluation. Next, I hold voluntary (but highly encouraged) technology mini-labs. The mini-labs are brief technology lesson plans that I created for a particular area. The teachers assume the role of students and we step through a brief lesson. After the mini-lesson, spend time discussing how the lesson plan can be adapted for specific curriculum. I also answer questions about the technology used in the sample lesson. IMHO, I have found that teachers are most receptive to new lesson plans over the summer, or just before they want to use them in class. In addition, I need to craft full-blown lesson plans (and sometimes rubrics). I have ever been successful showing a cool web2.0 technology and having teachers create a meaningful lesson plan. For a successful technology-oriented lesson plan, I like to start with the teacher's desired goal and work backwards. Take a look at Bloom's Modified Taxonomy to see what skills are being taught.
JDF
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